Down the Rabbit's Hole
by jb1515g
Summary: When five of the castaway's find a secret in the jungle, can they survive the experience? A more detailed summary inside. Please read and review. Enjoy.
1. Down the Rabbit

Down the Rabbit Hole

By: jb1515g

Disclaimer: I don't own Lost or any of its characters.

Summary: When five of the castaways journey into the jungle, they find something they knew was out there. Some were hoping it would never be found. Action/Adventure/Supernatural/Suspense/ not too much Jate or Skate except where the plot required it. Doesn't fit into the current Lost timeline. Fits best in a future slot toward the latter end of Season 2. This is Chapter 1. Please review so I'll know whether its worth continuing this story or if it would be better for me to explore some of my other ideas. Most interested in how well (or badly) I portrayed the characters through their actions and dialog. Enjoy!

Jack crashed back through the underbrush and emerged into the clearing. He took a sip from his water bottle and sat down on the ground, trying to regain his breath. The sky above was dark and foreboding; the rainy season had come and downpours had hampered their journey. Jack wasn't sure if he liked the weather hot and humid or wet and raining. _I'm not sure I like it either way. There isn't much I _do _like about this place. _As he thought, his gaze fell to Kate, still sleeping in the middle of the clearing. Jack watched her sleep, a quiet calm coming over him as the entire jungle around him fell silent. _But that doesn't mean I don't like_ somethings.

He continued his musings for another few minutes until he heard the sounds of another approaching. Off to his left, Locke came trudging through, sweat pouring off his brow.

"John," Jack said, glancing up.

"Hello, Jack," Locke answered. "You the first one back?"

"Yeah." Jack took another sip from his bottle. "I didn't find anything. You?"

Locke took a deep breath and looked around at the jungle. The corners of his mouth turned upward just slightly and he paused for a long moment. At length, he turned to Jack. "Nope, didn't find anything."

Jack eyed the man for another second, then turned away. It would take more than a lifetime to understand John Locke and Jack knew better than to try. He shook his head and returned to his water.

Locke sat down away from Jack and Kate. He took a few sips from his water bottle, but soon put it away. He knew the day's hike had only just begun. To pass the time, he took out his hunter's knife and methodically went about whetting it.

About ten minutes later, both Sawyer and Sayid came back. Both reported seeing nothing in their small scouting grid.

"Okay, so where to now, Doc?" Sawyer sat down and took a big gulp of water. He laid the bottle down next to him and rested back on his hands. "Got enough of this place yet?"

Jack looked over at Sawyer. "No, not yet. We still haven't found our way around. It's important to know exactly what is on this island with us."

"I agree with Jack," Sayid spoke up. "If past experience proves anything, mapping out the remainder of the island can only be a good thing. Having accurate intelligence is one of the best ways to safeguard ourselves."

Locke was standing wholly silent, staring off into the jungle. The eyes of the other three men were on him. Suddenly, he snapped out of his trance. "Yeah, I agree with Sayid. We need to continue to search the island." He turned around. "For our safety." He added as an afterthought.

In the middle of the clearing, Kate rolled over and groggily sat up. She took in her surroundings and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "What's going on?"

"The Doc here has decided to continue our wonderful hike," Sawyer said, getting to his feet. "It's almost like he forgets we're on a _deserted_ island."

"Yeah, a deserted island that isn't so deserted," Jack said firmly. "How many other people do we have to run into before you stop calling it a desert island?"

Everyone waited for Sawyer's usual quick, stinging retort, but it didn't come. He remained silent.

"Then it's settled," Locke said. "Let's keep going."

"After you, John." Jack replaced his water bottle into his backpack. "Lead on."

Locke stepped into the jungle, closely followed by Sayid and Sawyer. Jack slung his pack onto his back as Kate walked over toward him. "How long did I sleep for?"

"A few hours. You needed it, especially after yesterday."

"Did anyone else get any rest?" She put on her own pack.

"Sawyer slept for an hour, as did Locke. Sayid never seems to sleep. Must be a military thing."

"And you?"

"I sat down for a few minutes." He looked at her and could read her thoughts. "I'm fine. I got a lot of sleep the other day."

"Yeah, I'm sure." Kate said, turning to follow Sawyer. Jack brought up the rear.

It had been about a week since the five had left the beach and the caves in favor of an extended march through the jungle. It was a tough decision for Jack and the others to leave the group behind for such a long time, but recent events had forced their hand. Rumors ranging from ghost sightings to whispers in the jungle to even another supposed visit to the camp by an "other" made their way around camp, damaging what little morale the castaways had left.

So Jack, with the suggestion from some other people, decided it was important for them to know exactly what they were dealing with. Since they had arrived, it had been one mystery after another. With Locke now in the lead, the five man group hoped to put some answers to all the questions.

Locke led them through the dense jungle for an hour before stopping and inspecting the dirt very carefully. Kate and Jack came up to see what Locke was looking at.

"Looks like a set of footprints," Kate commented after a few seconds.

"That's what I was thinking," Locke agreed, picking at the ground with the tip of his knife. "But out here, in this isolated place, only one set. Doesn't make much sense."

"Come on, John," Jack said. "Making sense of this place is something many of us gave up a long time ago."

Locke looked up and stared back into the jungle. His eyes glanced up at the sky and then back down into the forest. "Let's get moving. The rains are coming."

They started off again, Sawyer falling into step with Kate. "So now he can predict the weather? Who is this guy, Rainman?"

Kate cast a sidelong glance at Sawyer and smiled to herself. "Do you trust him?"

"Not at all," Sawyer laughed. "But then again, Freckles, I've always had trust issues."

"You? Not trusting anyone? I never would have guessed," Kate said dryly. "Where do you think that comes from?"

"Probably from Iraqis and spinal surgeons who like to torture folks," he replied, just loud enough for everyone to hear. If Jack heard anything he didn't show it. Sayid noticeable stiffened for a moment, then relaxed again. He said nothing.

"Anyway, it ain't like our trusty guide is so open and honest anyway. I got good reason not to trust him. Hell, the last time anyone went out on a hike with him, they came back dead, or near to it." Sawyer wasn't done. "And who the hell does this guy think he is anyway, predicting the weath--," he wasn't even able to get the last word out. Pouring rain hammered down and erupted the jungle into a loud orchestra of pounding rain and high pitched _pitters_ and _patters_.

Kate laughed as Sawyer looked around unbelieving. "What is this, some sort of cruel joke?" Kate laughed louder.

Up ahead, Jack and Sayid cracked unseen smiles. Locke, if he had been aware of the entire conversation behind him, gave no indication. He continued leading the fivesome through the jungle.

Things transpired pretty much the same way for the next two days. The group journeyed deeper into the jungle but found nothing out of the ordinary. Locke was leading them along a rough trail, one of the few in the thick jungle. "It's from the animals." Locke had explained when Sayid questioned the existence of a trail in the middle of the jungle. "Must lead to a watering hole or something. The animals get used to one route and following it again and again. Over time, the plants get worn away by the constant use."

Just as Locke had said, the trail led to a small lake where the group decided to rest. The lake was surrounded on one side by a sheer wall of dark, imposing trees and on the other side by a steep precipice.

Immediately upon seeing the water, Sawyer stripped off his shirt and dove in, luxuriating in the cool relief offered by the lake. He came up from his dive and floated there, beckoning to Kate. "Come on in, Freckles. The water's great." He emphasized his last word with his deep Southern accent. Kate was soon in the water.

Sayid and Jack both knelt down by the lake, dipping in their water bottles. Jack cupped his hands and splashed the cool water onto his face.

"It's a nice relief," Sayid said, after doing the same, "from the oppression of the jungle's humidity."

Jack nodded his agreement. He glanced around the lake area. "Where'd Locke go?"

Sayid looked up and surveyed the area as well. Locke had disappeared. "I'm not sure. Perhaps he is in the forest, collecting wood for a fire."

Locke came back a few minutes later, carrying a bundle of bananas. He tossed them to Jack. "Seems like all the treasures of this island haven't yet been discovered. Bon appetite."

Kate and Sawyer came out of the lake and everyone sat down to a small meal of bananas and some dried fish they had carried with them. It was the finest meal many of them had had in days.

Before they could finish and start off again, the cloud top darkened considerably. The low rumbling sounds of thunder echoed through the sky. A thick rolling fog set in, blanketing the surrounding jungle in deep gloom.

Jack replaced his backpack on the ground and slumped his shoulders. "Well, there's no point in starting off now. It's too dark." He sighed. "We'll take this time to get some rest."

"I'm all for that," Sawyer said, laying back and interlacing his fingers behind his head. Yawning, he laid back and drifted off.

Kate sat down and yawned, too. She blinked slowly a few times, trying to fight the fatigue. She yawned again as she rubbed her eyes.

"You feeling alright?" Jack asked, a look of concern flashing across his face.

"Yeah," Kate said through a third yawn. "I'm just tired."

"Get some rest. I'll take the first watch."

"No," said Sayid. "I'm not going to sleep anyway. I'll watch. You get some rest, as well."

"Sayid," Jack turned to him. "You haven't slept since we left. You need it more than me."

"I will be fine, Jack." Sayid sat down and began working at the fire. "You work much harder than anyone. You need to be rested."

Jack didn't feel much like sleeping. "We'll both stay up. For the first hour at least."

"Then I'll take the third watch," said Locke. "Just call when you need me." He walked over, a ways from the camp and sat down with his back to the others.

Jack glanced around. Kate and Sawyer were already asleep. He watched her for just a split second too long.

"I'm sure you know that she admires you, as well," Sayid said, following the path of Jack's eyes. "You can tell by the way she responds around you."

Jack remained silent.

"Perhaps I've said too much." Sayid picked at the fringes of the fire.

"No,"' Jack answered, "you haven't said anything that isn't considered common knowledge anyway. I'm just not sure what to do, especially here in this place."

"I'm sure the answer will come to you," Sayid said, thankfully ending the topic.

Jack knew that he talked with Sayid some more, but he couldn't remember anything about the conversation. He suddenly found himself opening his eyes, the grogginess of sleep threatening to overtake him again. Slowly, he sat up.

It was pitch black. Only the soft, dying embers left over from a once roaring campfire illuminated the lake area. Something clicked in Jack's brain and he suddenly realized what that meant: both he and Sayid must have fallen asleep. _That's not like Sayid, to fall asleep like that_.

Kate and Sawyer were still sleeping. Jack gazed over to where Locke was sitting. The man had not moved at all, still hunched over with his back to the camp. But there was something different about him.

"Locke?" Jack called, but the other man did not respond. "Hey, Locke!" Still nothing.

Jack got to his feet and stretched out his sleep tired muscles. He sauntered over to where Locke was sitting. Even from a few meters out, Jack could tell something was wrong.

The older man was much thinner a fragile looking. His breathing was ragged and came in short bursts. The grey jacket he wore was torn and ripped in places, revealing a pale, ghastly looking skin underneath.

"Locke?" Jack said again. He knelt down next to Locke and grabbed his shoulder. At his touch, Locke tumbled backward, slamming down onto the ground. Jack recoiled as he looked on his face.

The skin on his face had become baggy and was unnaturally bunched in places. His eyes sockets were empty. A small trickle of dried blood stained the bottom of his nose. His mouth gaped open, revealing the most hideous disfiguration of all. Locke's tongue was missing, cut completely out of his mouth. His breathing slowed and then stopped entirely.

"Locke!" Jack felt for a pulse. There was none.

"He is gone," came a voice from the treeline. Jack looked up. His gaze fell upon a tall figure, standing wholly still. The figure looked like a living corpse, with long, greenish-gray, gangly limbs, a thin torso showing his ribcage, and an oval face, crowned with sparse, stringy hair. "He was a sacrifice the island demanded."

Jack froze when he heard that. He'd heard that before. "Who are you?"

"I am the Messenger. Nothing more, nothing less."

Jack looked back down at Locke. His image seemed to be graying and gradually fading away. "I got the message." Jack looked back up. The figure was gone.

Jack grinded his teeth and stared down at Locke's deformed face. All fell silent around him, until a whisper pierced the air. It was an unnatural voice, coming from all directions at once. The whisper drilled into his mind, clouding out all other thoughts. _This is the lot of a leader: to exist alone._

There was a high pitched wail from behind him. Jack spun instinctively, even as his mind told him he didn't want to see what was there. Leaping to his feet, he sprinted back to the glowing embers that marked the campsite. In the back of his mind, he noted that Sawyer and Sayid's sleeping forms were no where to be found. There was only Kate, desperately crawling on the ground toward him.

He knelt down and cradled her in his hands. Her breathing came in short bursts, forced through immense pain. The tan shirt she wore was dark and stained with warm liquid. Jack knew instantly in was blood.

She went to speak, but Jack put his finger up to her lips, silencing her. "Don't speak, just breath. Everything's going to be alright." But even he didn't believe himself. Out in the middle of the jungle, so far away from his supplies, he knew there wasn't much he could do. Jack eased Kate down onto her back, preparing to try and find out where the blood was coming from. As he began to let her go, she reached out and held his hands. "Kate, I'm here to help you. Don't worry."

"She looked at him and opened her mouth. Her voice was thin and pained. "Jack," she paused, gagging slightly. "Don't go down… the rabbit hole." She winced as he coughed. "Whatever you do…don't…go down the rabbit…hole."

Her eyelids settled down and she was gone.

Jack took a deep breath to try and calm his shaking nerves, but it didn't work. His vision blurred as he brought a hand up to wipe his face. "No, no, no, no," he repeated again and again, refusing to believe his eyes. But it was right there in front of him. He couldn't _not_ believe it.

"Thus is the lot of a leader: to exist alone," came a voice from the left. Jack forced himself to look. The tall, gangly corpse was back, standing motionless at the edge of the jungle.

Jack stared at the corpse, anger and hatred boiling up inside of him. He stood and began stalking toward the thing. He wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do, but he knew that whatever it was, it would be painful for the corpse. "Who are you? Why are you doing this!" Jack heard himself yell. He almost didn't recognize the blackness in his voice. In his haste to attack the corpse, Jack tripped over a fallen branch and tumbled headlong to the ground.

"I am the Messenger. Nothing more, nothing less." He heard, but when Jack looked up, the corpse was gone.

Jack's breath hissed through clenched teeth. He began to pound the ground with his fist, over and over, uncaring of the pain in his wrist or the soreness of his muscles. "No!" he shouted, pounding the ground harder.

Jack was shocked awake, sitting up suddenly and lashing out with both hands. As his vision adjusted to the light, he slowly recognized that his hands were clutching Locke's throat. Easing his grip, he stared in disbelief at the face before him.

"You okay, Jack?" Locke asked.

Without answering, Jack shot his head left and right. There was Sayid maintaining the fire, just like always. He heard the splashing of someone swimming carelessly in the lake; Sawyer taking another swim. Locke was still in front of him, kneeling down. Only one person was missing.

"Where's Kate?" Jack realized his breathing was rapid. As if in answer, the jungle behind erupted into the sounds of someone crashing through the brush. Jack turned and was met by Kate's warm smile.

"I'm right here, sleepyhead," she said.

Jack turned back to Locke. "John?"

Locke smiled. "That's what they call me." He eyed the doctor. "What's wrong?"

_It had all been a dream. But it had been so real, so lifelike. The realest thing I had ever experienced._ "Nothing's wrong." He looked all around and noticed the sky had cleared up. "How long was I out for?"

"Three days," Locke answered.

"We were worried about you," Kate added, sitting down next to him. "You talked in your sleep a lot."

"Must've been really tired." Jack shook his head. In actuality, he felt sluggish and groggy _now_, even more than when he had fallen asleep. Digging the heels of his hands into his eyes, he wiped the sleep from his eyes. "Sorry for falling asleep for so long--,"

"Don't be sorry," Kate interrupted. "You needed it."

"But we lost so much time."

"I don't mind it," Locke said. "After all, we need our leader to be well rested. You're the most important person here and you need to be fresh."

"Yeah." Jack cast his eyes to the ground.

"Hey, Doc," Sawyer said, coming over toward the fire. It was some time later. Jack was managing the fire while Locke led Sayid back to the banana tree. "Glad to see you're back with us."

"Hey Sawyer," Jack said, glancing at the other man. He looked for only a second, then went back to staring into the flames.

"Ready to tell anyone 'bout what's wrong yet?" Sawyer asked.

"Nothing's wrong."

"Oh, come now, Doc. I may act like a kid but I wasn't born yesterday. You ain't foolin' nobody."

"It was nothing," Jack hesitated. "Just a dream I had while I was sleeping."

"Dream, eh? Sure it wasn't a nightmare?"

Jack turned to look at Sawyer. "How would you know?"

"Don't know too many people who shout 'No!' over and over again when they're dreamin' of candy canes and cute, little bunnies."

"It was…nothing. Just a dream."

"Hey, you're the doc, Doc. Just thought I'd ask."

The five started off through the jungle at daybreak the next day. Locke and Sayid took the lead, with Sawyer behind them, and Kate and Jack bringing up the rear. They marched in silence for an hour before Kate finally spoke.

"So really, what's wrong?" She whispered to Jack. The natural sounds of the jungle assured that no one but Jack could hear her question.

"It was just a nightm—dream I had while I slept."

"What about?"

"The island, different things," he answered.

"Sure it was a dream?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know, Jack. This isn't a normal place. I've heard the stories some of the others have been telling." She looked meaningfully at him. "About ghosts and hallucinations and visions in dreams. I've even been there for the 'security system' and the polar bear. A polar bear, Jack. This isn't a normal place."

Jack didn't get a chance to answer. Up ahead, Sawyer leapt off the trail and plunged into the forest.

"Sawyer! Where are you going?" Jack increased his pace.

"Calm down, Doc. Saw something shiny in the jungle." He cast back a wry smile. "And you know how much I love shiny things in the jungle."

Jack and Kate caught up to where Sawyer had left the trail just as Locke and Sayid came back.

"You should stay on the path," Sayid said.

Sawyer was bent over in the underbrush tugging at something. "Calm down, Mohammed. You ain't worried 'bout me, are ya?"

"What is it?" Locke asked.

"It's some sort of handle sticking up outta the ground. Can't open it, though," Sawyer was yanking the handle, but to no avail.

Locke and Jack looked at each other. "You don't think," Locke said.

"I'm not sure. But I don't want to find out." He walked further up the trail. "Let's get going."

"Hold on, Doc," Sawyer shouted. "I've almost got it." He pulled one more time and fell back over as the handle came up. A small metal door surfaced from under the dirt with it. "What the hell is this?"

"It's the second entrance," Locke whispered to himself, beginning to walk forward.

"Come on, Locke. We aren't out here for this," Jack had stopped walking and was starting to return.

"If we're not out here for this, what _are_ we out here for?" Locke called back, reaching Sawyer. Kate and Sayid had followed Locke off the trail. Jack jogged to catch up.

Soon, all five were standing around the open hatch. "What is it?" Sawyer asked, eyeing the darkness beyond the doorway.

"It's a hatch," Jack answered.

"The second entrance," Locke specified. Leaning in closer, he peered down.

"The _second_ entrance?" Sawyer looked from Locke to Jack. "Where was the first entrance?"

"It's a long story, Sawyer. A story for another time," Jack said.

"The ladder to this one seems to be intact," Locke commented. He wasted no time in stepping in and gaining a foothold.

"What are you doing?" Jack asked.

Locke was surprised at the question. "I'm going down, Jack."

"No, you're not." Jack stepped forward, nearing the hatch. "We're moving on."

"Jack," Locke stepped out of the hole and planted his feet. "We came out here to explore the island and see what else was here." He motioned toward the hatch. "This is _exactly_ what we're out here for."

"I wasn't think about descending into bottomless black pits."

"As apposed to hikin' blindly around an evil jungle that wants to kill us?" Sawyer said. "Come on, Doc. Aren't ya the least bit curious?"

"Not you too," Jack groaned. "Out of everyone here, I'd expected you to be the last to want to go down."

"Call it the new and improved me." Sawyer smiled.

"I'm not going down," Jack stated firmly.

"I think it would be a bad idea, as well," Sayid agreed. "We have no information and no way of gathering it. The first hatch was bad enough. I think we need time to prepare and plan if we were to go down."

Everybody turned and looked at Kate, the only remaining party member not to have voiced their opinion. She looked from face to face, trying to read their thoughts.

"I think--," her statement was cut off by a loud roar from the jungle. The group immediately looked toward the direction of the sound. It wasn't long before another roar, this one mixed with a strange, unnatural tooting sound. The second roar was noticeably closer than the first.

Jack looked at Locke, both communicating without saying a word. The rumbling of the ground increased. Two nearby trees uprooted and were flung into the air. They came crashing down far closer to the band then they would have liked.

"The security system," Sayid said, watching the jungle.

"It's settled then," Locke said. "We all go down."

"No." Jack shook his head. "Nobody is going down. We can't. It's not safe." The nightmare was still fresh in his mind and he didn't think it was smart not to heed its warning. _It's just a dream_, another part of his mind shouted at him. _It wasn't real. Go! The beast is coming._

"Jack, we need to go down," Locke said. "You've seen this thing for yourself. The only safe place is down the hatch."

Any further debate was silenced by another, much stronger and closer roar. More trees uprooted and flew through the air, flung around as if they were nothing more than small twigs.

"Fine, we go down," Jack said. He looked at Sayid.

Sayid put his hand up. "We will go down. There is no need to explain."

Locke was first, deftly dropping down onto the ladder. After a few rungs, he was gone, engulfed by shadow. Kate followed closely behind. Sawyer, a bit clumsy on the ladder, clambered down next. Jake was last, following in Sayid.

"Anyone ever read Alice in Wonderland?" Locke's voice echoed up from above. "This is just like going down the rabbit's hole."

Jack climbed down in silence, trying to think past the ball of ice that had settled in his stomach.

Jack, Sawyer, Locke, Kate, Sayid


	2. Fire and Water

**Fire and Water**

Howard loved games, all kinds of games. It didn't matter what type of game it was. Games where he used people as the game pieces were his favorite. Living, breathing, thinking players, ones that could fight and had a will to survive. They always offered a unique challenge.

A small pinging noise awoke Howard from his sleep. He rolled out of his bunk and skipped over to his switchboard. The pining rang out for a few more seconds. Howard could have luxuriated in the wonderful high pitched noise for hours. But he couldn't. Howard flipped the switch that turned off the alarm. Instantly he was away, running out of his control room. There was no time to waste. The hatch had been opened. It was playtime.

Locke's foot hit the concrete floor. The ladder, one that stretched in the darkness for stories, had finally bottomed out. Locke stood firmly planted on the hard floor and took a deep breath. The air was musty and stank.

"Hey, get outta the way." Sawyer's voice echoed throughout the concrete shaft.

Locke looked around and took a step away from the ladder. Except for a tiny square of light high above them, the entire area was pitch black.

The sound of two more feet hitting the ground marked Sawyer's exit from the ladder. Locke was unclipping a flashlight from his belt. Sawyer squinted as the narrow beam of light flooded into the darkness. They were in a tall concrete silo buried in the ground. Branching off from the bottom of the silo was a tunnel, built with the same dark gray concrete.

By this time, the rest of the group had reached the silo's bottom. Jack and Sayid added their own flashlights to Locke's.

"Only one way to go from here," Locke said, taking a step forward.

"Are we sure this is the best course of action?" Sayid asked. "Perhaps were should take some time—,"

"I don't think that's smart," Locke interrupted. "We're here now. We might as well follow the path in front of us."

Kate turned to Jack, who remained silent. "What do you think?"

He shrugged. She could hardly see him, but the look on his face was unmistakable. It was the face of someone filled with dread.

"Well, come on, Doc. If ya got no objections, let's go," Sawyer said.

"What is—," Locke began. A loud screech and thundering crash cut him off. The tiny sliver of light that marked the top of the silo was gone. The hatch was closed.

"Again, our decision is made for us," Sayid said. "It is almost as if us following this tunnel is our fate."

Jack exhaled sharply.

"Okay, then," Locke perked up. "Let's get going."

The concrete tunnel was two meters wide and twice as tall. It was smooth, with no recesses or offshoots whatsoever. It ran, as far as the castaways could tell, entirely straight with not even the slightest deviation in direction. They walked on for a long hour before coming to a dead end.

"What now?" Sawyer asked.

Locke stepped up to the solid wall blocking their path. He inspected the wall, trying to find any marking or crease in the blockade. "I don't understand," he said after a minute. "There must be something—,"

"Over here," Sayid called. He had wandered toward the right side of the tunnel. His flashlight was trained on a small section of the wall. "The tunnel turns here."

In the wall were three archways, separate tunnels leading off from the main one.

"Which one do we take?" Kate asked.

"We should split up," Locke answered. "Find out where all of them lead."

"No," Jack spoke up for the first time since entering the hatch. "We're not splitting up. We'll pick one and go down there."

"Jack, we have no idea where these paths lead," Locke said. "It would be a shame for _all_ of us to meet the same grisly fate, just because you wanted us to stay together. Wouldn't it be better to lose just one or two of the group, rather than the entire group?"

"Hold on a sec," Sawyer said. "I'm not so sure this is a good idea anymore."

"It's a little too late for that, Sawyer," Jack said dryly. "We're stuck down here now until we find a way out."

Jack turned to Locke. "There are five of us and three tunnels. Someone will be alone."

"I'll go alone," Kate said.

Jack opened his mouth to respond, but Locke was faster. "No, Kate. You go with Sawyer. Jack can go with Sayid. I'll go alone."

"This is a bad idea," Jack said.

"I'm open to better suggestions," Locke said. "If you have any."

Jack remained silent.

"Okay, then. Everyone got a flashlight? Let's go." Locke aimed his light down the middle tunnel and plowed into the darkness.

"Ready, Freckles?" Sawyer asked, shining his light on Kate.

Jack stepped in close to Kate. "Be careful."

"I will be." Their eyes met.

"I'm serious," Jack's voice was stressed.

"Aw, don't worry, Doc." Sawyer put his arm around Kate's shoulders. "She's with me. What could possibly go wrong?"

Kate stayed a step ahead of Sawyer as they trekked down the left tunnel. Sawyer kept the flashlight trained ahead and downward, illuminating the floor a few steps ahead. She was half bent over and moving slowly, studying the ground for signs of previous use. So far, she had found none.

Suddenly, the light went out.

"Hey, Kate. You believe it ghosts?" Sawyer's voice seemed to come from all around.

"Cut it out, Sawyer," she turned around to face him. "Turn the light back on."

The flashlight clicked on and illuminated Sawyer's face. The light was pointed up from his chin, casting his features in a ghastly red light. "Boo," he said, then laughed warmly. Kate rolled her eyes and smiled.

Sawyer refocused the light down the tunnel and the two continued on.

"So, you two set a date yet?" Sawyer asked a few minutes later.

"Huh?"

"You and Jack. When you tyin' the knot?"

Kate smiled. "Shut up, Sawyer."

"No, I'm serious. He likes you, ya know."

"Jack's nice and all, I just—," she trailed off.

"You just what?"

"I don't know."

"See yourself with a different type of man?" Sawyer was suddenly much closer.

"Something like that, maybe," Kate could feel Sawyer just behind her. She could see the grin on his face.

"Come on, Freckles. You can tell me."

"Wait a minute." Kate's tone had changed.

"I know you want to." Sawyer smiled. "Just say it."

"Sawyer!"

"Fine." He backed up and became indignant. "But don't say you didn't have a chance."

"Do you smell that?"

Sawyer took a deep breath. "Yeah, smells like kerosene."

"It is kerosene."

"What's that down here for?"

As he spoke, the path ahead of them erupted into a blaze of red-yellow flames. Sawyer covered his eyes, blinded by the intense light. He fell back and tripped over his own feet. His shoulder hit the ground hard, jamming his arm.

Slowly, his eyes adjusted to the light. The tunnel in front of them was engulfed in fire as was the pathway behind them. The walls, too, had begun burning, creating a box of flame. Sawyer stood up, rubbing his arm.

Kate was frantically roaming back and forth from one wall of flame to the other. "Looks like we're trapped."

"This ain't good." The fire was continuing to grow and moved steadily inward. The box was filling itself in.

Jack and Sayid crept along the right tunnel, sweeping the flashlight back and forth. The tunnel was straight and featureless, exactly like the main one, and ran for a long distance.

"I've never seen anything like this," Sayid said. "This tunnel must run for miles, buried so deep into the ground. How could anyone trapped here accomplish this sort of feat?"

"I stopped questioning things on this island a long time ago." Jack stared into the darkness. _What is happening here? I can't believe I allowed everyone to come down here. It's dangerous._ Jack found one side of his brain fighting the other again. _But the dream wasn't true, it couldn't be. It was just a dream._ He cleared his head. Now was not the time to be arguing with himself.

They walked on in silence for a long time. At times, it was hard to tell they were making any progress at all. Every section of the tunnel was identical to the previous one.

"So what do you think about Locke?" Jack asked. He had been looking for a way to break up the oppressive silence.

"We've had our problems in the past." Sayid said.

"Do you trust him?"

"In this situation, I don't have the luxury of selective trust," Sayid answered. "We must all have faith in each other, or there is no hope of survival."

"But how do you know you can count on people?"

"In the Republican Guard, we learned to trust very rapidly. We were forced to." He paused, no doubt recalling a painful past. "I think we can trust Locke," he deftly changed the subject. "I may not seem like we can at times, but if necessary, I believe he'll come through."

They came to a section of tunnel that was different than the rest. The walls widened sharply and squared off. At the other end, the walls slanted back at the same sharp angle.

"This seems to be some sort of room." Sayid was inspecting the walls. "Like a checkpoint along the tunnel."

"What do you think it's for?"

"I do not know, but there's something about these walls."

"What do you mean?"

"There are holes in the concrete. Many of them." Sayid was carefully examining the walls.

"Holes?"

"I wonder what they are for."

A deep grating noise echoed through the antechamber. It bounced off the walls and thundered from all around. Sayid turned away from the wall and rapidly directed the flashlight at the origin of the noise.

He found it too late. Two heavy stone doors settled into place with a thump, one at each end of the chamber. Both Jack and Sayid sprinted toward the door, but it was solid. No amount of pushing would even budge it.

Jack looked at Sayid. "What is this place?"

A new sound forestalled Sayid's reply. It was a trickling noise, like a small babbling brook. It increased in volume becoming a steady stream and a splattering against the concrete.

"Oh no," Sayid turned the flashlight onto the walls. Water was pouring into the room, rushing through the small holes. In a matter of moments, the water level was up to their ankles.

"Okay, let's think logically." Even with his professional tone, a hint of panic was evident in his voice.

But thinking logically wasn't doing anything. The water was soon neck high and still rising. Just seconds later, the water rose over their heads.

Jack and Sayid kicked upward, trying to keep their heads above water. The ceiling was looming ever closer, threatening to cut them off from escape. The air was draining. The water was rising. Before long, only their faces were above the water's surface. They took short gasps, filling their lungs with what little oxygen was left. The water continued rising.

Locke was accustomed to being alone. Sometimes he preferred it that way. It gave him a chance to think and explore his own thoughts. It was fun, digging deeper into his own mind.

He didn't get much time to think. After just a few minutes of walking, he found a small square room. The room was bear and had no exit. A dead end.

Locke was about to turn around when something caught his eye. There was writing, engraved into the concrete on the right wall. It wasn't anything special, just four ordinary words: Welcome to the Gameroom.

Locke read the message twice, then a third time. It made no sense.

"Welcome to the Gameroom," Locke repeated to himself, slowly and carefully. He ran his fingers over the words. He didn't know why, but somewhere deep in his mind, something clicked. These words meant something, something important.

Locke didn't have a chance to figure it out. Something hit him hard from behind. He fell to his knees, a searing pain slashing through his head. Darkness nipped at the edge of his vision, but he fought it. A second blow to his head ended any resistance. Locke fell limply to the ground.


	3. The Game

**Chapter 3: The Game**

Jack woke up. He was sitting in a hard, metal chair with his face leaned forward resting on a steel table. The table was cold against his cheek. Shivers ran up and down his spine causing goose bumps to ripple on his arms. Slowly, painfully, he straightened in the chair. His eyelids were heavy and fatigue clouded his mind. Fighting against the exhaustion, Jack looked around, surveying his surroundings.

In the dim light, Jack could see he was sitting in a room fashioned like a basement. It reminded him of a concrete police interrogation room. The floor and ceiling were smooth and grey. The wall, too, was concrete. The whole room was cold and foreboding. To the right, embedded in the concrete was a mirror, relaying Jack's own image back at him. Oddly, Jack realized the room had no visible door. The air was cool and damp, smelling of mold and musk.

Then the memories came back. Flashes of pictures popped into his mind. Jack remembered the chamber, the water, his burning lungs begging for air. Then the blackness. He remembered blacking out first; Sayid was still struggling at the water's surface gasping for breath.

Sayid.

For the first time, Jack recognized he was alone. His throat became thick and his stomach twisted into knots.

A light powered on from above, bathing Jack in a pale white glow. The spotlight illuminated only the table and chair. Jack was on an island of light, surrounded by total darkness. He squinted up into the light, trying to see where it was coming from.

The light went off. For long seconds, Jack was temporarily blinded by a flash of red afterimage. Softer lights, scattered around the room, gradually came on. Before long, the room was alit in a mellow glow. The entire room could now be seen in detail.

There was a squawk, like feedback from a speaker. "Welcome," a voice echoed throughout the stone room. It seemed to be coming from all directions at once. "Are you ready to play?"

Jack thought the voice sounded excited, almost giddy. He tried to speak, but his throat was parched and his voice came out cracked. "Who are you?"

For a while, there was silence. It hung in the air and was almost tangible; a blanketing suffocating quiet. He'd begun to think he was hallucinating the voice when it spoke again. "My name is Howard. What's yours?" The voice was genuinely curious.

Jack was confused by the boldness of the answer and question. Having no other response he said, "My name is Jack."

"Okay, Jack, are you ready to play?" The answer came back immediately.

"Play what?"

"The Game."

Jack sat still for a long while. "Where am I?"

"The Gameroom."

"Where's Sayid?"

"I don't know anyone by that name."

"How did you find me?"

"No more questions." The voice was upset. "Now we play!"

Jack couldn't believe what was happening. This had to be a dream. "What if I don't play?"

"Then they'll all die," Howard said simply.

Jack's heart skipped a beat. "Who'll die?"

A bluish glowing light came on from the left. Jack hadn't noticed it before, but there was a screen fixed to the left wall, directly opposite the mirror. On the screen was a live image of Locke, Sawyer, Sayid, and Kate. They were in a similar stone room somewhere, each with their hands and legs bound. None of them were moving.

"They're just sleeping right now. But if you want to save them, you'll have to play," Howard said.

Jack scowled. "Play what?"

"The Game, Jack. I already told you that." Howard laughed. Or was it a giggle? Jack couldn't tell. "I'll give you one challenge for each of them. If you succeed, they live. If you fail, they'll die."

Jack realized he was holding his breath. Every muscle in his body was tensed.

"Are you ready to play?"

He had no other choice. "What do I have to do?"

"Just listen and play along."

The room plunged into darkness as the light shut off. Jack thought he could see movement in the shadows, but he couldn't be sure. In a minute, the soft lights powered back up. The monitor, too, came on again, showing the four castaways.

"You'll play first…," Howard stopped, considering the choices. "For the old guy." The monitor picture zoomed in on Locke.

Jack noticed that there were now two objects on the table in front of him. His breath caught in his chest. He wasn't comfortable with the fact that someone could get that close to him without him knowing. Howard had done this before.

The speaker squawked again. "On the table are two water jugs; a three and five gallon jug. On the wall next to the mirror is a faucet. Near the faucet, on the floor, is a scale. You have three minutes, Jack, to put four gallons of water in the five gallon jug and place it on the scale. I don't think I need to remind you of the consequences if you can't do it."

A three minute timer replaced the live picture on the screen. The green numbers were reflected in the mirror.

"Go." The timer clicked down to two fifty-nine.

Grabbing the jugs, Jack shot up from the chair and ran to the tap. The knob squeaked and cold water came spewing out of the faucet. It poured out and fell into an open drain situated in the ground directly under the stream.

Jack looked at the jugs. They were ordinary plastic containers, with no markings or measurements on the side. All he had was the three gallon measurement and the five gallon measurement.

He pushed the three gallon jug under the faucet and filled it about two-thirds of the way. Looking at it, Jack guessed it would be just about two gallons. Carefully, he poured the two gallons into the five gallon jug.

"Uh, uh, uh, Jack." Howard scolded. "It must be _exactly_ four gallons. No guessing."

Jack clenched his teeth until hard his jaw hurt. "This is impossible!" He threw down the jugs in anger. Taking a handful of water from the tap and rubbed it over his forehead and back through his hair. The timer read 2:01.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten." Jack took a deep breath, blew it out sharply, and let his fear go with it. He was in control now. "Okay, Jack, think. Think logically."

He picked up the two jugs and stared long and hard at them. The sound of the water gushing into the drain pounded his ears. It was draining fast. His time was slipping away just as quickly. The timer was down to 1:40, but his mind was still blank. All sorts of math and calculations ran through his head, trying to find a logical way to solve the puzzle. Jack started with step one; the only possible step one. He filled the three gallon jug to the top and carefully poured it into a larger one.

1:20 left on the timer.

From that step, he ran through all the possibilities, all the options he had. _Three gallons in the five gallons, two gallons of space left, nothing in the three gallon._ Something clicked, and he had it. _Two gallons of air in the five gallon jug._ It was like a lightning bolt flashed in his mind. All of it fell into place perfectly.

But he only had on minute left. As fast and cautiously as possible, Jack filled back up the three gallon jug. Then he dumped what he could into the five gallon container, bringing the water level right to the brim. The five gallon jug was full and only one gallon remained in the three gallon container. Jack dumped out the five gallons and replaced it with the one gallon he had.

:40.

Jack felt his pulse beating rapidly as he filled up the three gallon jug again. He took a steadying breath; he would need unwavering hands for this last part. Everything had to be perfect.

:30.

The three gallon jug was full. As slowly as he could, he added the three gallons of water to the one gallon, combining them into the five gallon pitcher. Jack remained as composed as possible. If the slightest drop missed the container's mouth, he'd have to start over. He did not have time to start over.

:10.

The three gallon jug emptied, adding its full capacity to the one gallon held in the five gallon jug. _That's it! Four gallons._

:07.

Jack placed the full jug down on the scale, a black square built right into the floor. He held his breath. There was a soft chirp from the scale and a green indicator light blinked once. The timer stopped. It read :04.

Jack let out the pent up breath and felt his knees wobble. His legs threatened to give out, but he fought the urge to collapse and remained standing. It was important to appear strong in Howard's eyes.

"Congrats," Howard said. The speaker conveyed genuine happy. "You won."

"Okay," Jack said, glaring at the mirror. He figured Howard was behind it, watching him through one-way glass. "Let us go."

"Come now, Jack." Howard was not happy anymore. "I explained the rules. You must play for _each_ of their lives. Right now, only the old guy is safe." The monitor showed the live picture again.

Jack felt his anger boiling, but quickly pushed it back down. Howard was in control and Jack needed to have a clear mind. Unchecked emotion could kill him or one of his friends.

For a split second, Jack lingered on the word friend. It was an automatic thought, but it confused him. He knew he had to save his friends. At some point in the past, the survivors of the plane crash went from being just fellow passengers to being friends. He looked at Kate.

"Time for task number two," Howard said. "Go back and sit down."

Slowly, Jack walked over and sat down. The chair was hard and cold. His vision blurred and his pulse slowed. Immediately, Jack recognized the signs that he was coming off an adrenaline rush.

The lights darkened again. More movement in the shadows. Jack imagined leaping off the chair and grabbing Howard. He could force Howard to release them. To release Kate. Almost at once, he knew it wouldn't work. He was disorientated in a strange environment. Howard was in his element and moving rapidly with calculated precision. Plus, he had no idea if Howard was armed. Jack wouldn't have a chance.

The lights came back up. The jugs were gone, replaced with 21 tall glasses lined up on the table. Seven of the glasses were full, seven half-full, and the rest empty.

_Great, more water._ "What do I have to do now?"

Howard laughed. "Getting ahead of ourselves, aren't we Jack? We don't know who you're playing for yet."

Jack felt tense and was acutely aware of his own weariness.

"Um… how about…him?" The camera zoomed in on Sayid. "His life hangs in the balance." He laughed again. "This one's easy Jack. You need to divide these 21 glasses into three separate groups. Each group needs to have the same number of full, half full, and empty glasses. The timer starts at five minutes this time." The monitor showed 5:00. "Go."

Jack stated calm. He began with some simple math, but the answer didn't come to him. Mentally, he poured water back and forth from the glasses, trying to get each group in a multiple of three.

The timer clicked down to 3:30.

Jack had always possessed a logical mind, but he'd never really liked logic puzzles. Cursed under his breath, he swore that this challenge wouldn't take up the entire amount of time. He wasn't sure his body could handle another close call.

Not content to simply think anymore, he grabbed the glasses and began pouring around. Some full glasses he divided into two half glasses. Other halves he poured together to create a full glass. Two minutes later, he was unintentionally back at where he had started. He sighed and started over.

Jack dumped two half glasses into an empty one. He now had eight full, five half-full, and eight empty glasses.

As he looked at the 21 glasses lined up in front of him, he knew he was close. Something about the current numbers he had made sense. It had to be the right path. The timer hit 1:15.

Jack fell into deep thought. He reached for a full glass, but pulled back. _No, that's not right. It has to be..._

With one minute left, he poured two more half glasses into an empty glass. Jack smiled. He was done. In front of him were nine full glasses, three half-full glasses, and nine empty glasses. He divided them into three equal groups.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief. The timer read :42.

"Again, you come through, Jack. Impressive time, too." Howard's voice boomed throughout the room. "Another one of your friends safe. You're a real hero, Jack."

"Let's get on with it." Jack was growing irritated. He didn't appreciate being toyed with. "Who's next?"

"Hmmm, an interesting question. Who do _you_ want to play for?"

His mind screamed. _Kate! You want to play with Kate!_ But he knew better than to answer that question aloud.

"Okay, if you won't answer, I'll choose again. Let's play for…him." The camera zoomed in on Sawyer.

_Somehow he knows. I don't know how, but somehow he knows I wanted to play for Kate. He's toying with me again. This whole thing, its all one big mind game._

"No need to dim the lights this time, Jack. All your toys are already on the table, behind the glasses."

Jack parted the cups and found what Howard was talking about. He hadn't even noticed them before. It was two separate pieces of string.

He looked closer at the strings. They were unlike any two pieces rope he'd ever seen. One was longer than the other and thinner in places. The other was short and fat at one end, thin at the other.

"Those are two slow-burning fuses. Each one burns for exactly one hour. The fuses don't burn evenly, though. So halfway burnt isn't exactly thirty minutes. Here's the challenge. You need to time 45 minutes using those fuses. 50 minutes from now, you have to type in the code on this computer." A small portal opened in the wall in front of Jack and a desktop computer slid out on a platform. "That means you have five minutes to figure out how to use those two fuses to time exactly 45 minutes. The lighter is under your chair." Howard paused. "Ready, set, go."

The monitor began the five minute countdown. Jack watched the time decrease for a second, then retrieved the lighter. This task was different, harder. He couldn't experiment or use trial and error to figure it out. Ashes couldn't be made back into a fuse.

Again, he fell into his logical, analytical thoughts. One fuse would burn through in an hour, which meant if you lit both ends it would burn completely in half that time. All he had to do was form a way to time 15 minutes.

_One fuse burning at both ends is half and hour. The other fuse burning at one end would be halfway when the first finished. Then… _"Yes!" Jack shouted aloud. He had it. Jack spent the rest of the five minutes confirming his thoughts again and again. He still wasn't confident when the timer reached :05.

Taking a deep breath and hoping he was right, Jack lit both ends of one fuse just as the timer hit :00. Right away, he lit the second fuse at one end. Closing his eyes and sitting back, he rested as much as he could.

Half and hour later, the first fuse went out. Only a pile of ash marked what had once been there. Jack lit the second fuse at the other end. Now that, too, was burning at two ends. It would go out in fifteen minutes. And the total elapsed time would be forty five minutes.

The chamber was quiet and still. Nothing but the fire moved. It was oppressive and Jack fought the urge to shout or talk. The silence deepened.

The second fuse burned out. Jack ran for the desktop. He was about to begin typing when he realized he didn't know the code. Howard had never given it to him. Jack had only a precious minute to spare.

"What's the code?" he yelled. "You never gave it to me!"

There was no answer.

"You can't do this! I played the game, I followed the rules! What is the CODE?" Jack was screaming now, desperate to save Sawyer's life. His minute was almost up.

No answer.

"Think, Jack, think." He held his head in his hands. _Howard's played fair up until now, even though he didn't have to. That meant he already knew the code. But what was it?_

Jack looked at the computer screen. The green cursor was blinking. For a minute, Jack flashbacked to an earlier time.

"No, it can't be." Shaking his head, Jack entered the only code he knew. On the monitor, the computer screen relayed his keyboard commands: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42. He almost didn't believe it. Jack's finger hovered over the execute button. Closing his eyes, he pressed it.

The room remained still and silent. Then the computer retreated back into the wall and the portal closed.

"Good job, Jack." The speaker squawked. "You've saved three of your friends. Only one more to go."

By this time, Jack was angry. "Haven't you had enough fun? Let them go."

Howard laughed. "The game's not over yet, Jack. You can't stop now. Besides, the fourth task is easy."

"What is it?"

"It's a maze, Jack."

"A maze? How do I—," A loud grating noise cut off the rest of Jack's question. A door sized portion of the wall in front of Jack receded upward into the ceiling. Beyond was a rectangle of black.

"Enter the maze, Jack. You'll find what you most desire at the end." Howard paused, and then continued, "Be careful, though. It's a dangerous place, full of deadly traps and pitfalls. After all, I can't make it _too_ easy on you." Howard laughed again, but this laugh was different. It was an evil. "You have 45 minutes to find the end. Good luck, you'll need it."

Jack took a deep breath, readying himself for Howard's Maze of Death.

"Go."

Jack stepped through the stone archway, into the darkness beyond. It was time to play one final game for Kate's life.


	4. Inside the Maze

**Chapter 4: Inside the Maze**

The heavy door slammed closed behind him. A hum echoed through the darkness and large halogen lamps came on, attached to the ceiling. Jack felt dwarfed. The ceiling towered above, allowing the light to diffuse through the entire gigantic chamber he now stood in.

Jack was in-between two tall stone walls, forming a stone corridor in front of him. About ten paces ahead, it turned sharply to the right.

"Don't dally, Jack." Howard's voice boomed around. "You only have 44 minutes left."

Jack thought of Kate, somewhere at the end of the maze, and began sprinting forward. Halfway to the turn a blast of cold air came from no where and shocked Jack, sending him off balance. He hit the stone wall hard.

Howard laughed over the speakers. "Watch for those little surprises, Jack. They're everywhere."

Jack slowly got to his feet massaging his shoulder. Carefully, he walked forward. The cold air blasted him again, but he was ready. He walked through it to the end of the hallway. Following the turn, he continued down the corridor.

After another two turns along the same hallway, Jack came to a fork in the path. One led to the right, the other to the left. He paused, trying to look down each pathway.

"Tick, tock, tick, tock, Jack. You'd better hurry." Howard was amused.

"You can't do this!" Jack yelled the ceiling. "You have to let us go!"

There was no answer. Exasperated, Jack took a deep breath and ran to the left. He took a turn and was faced with a dead end. Suddenly a cloud of spears flew at him, launching from niches in the wall. He dove to the side, narrowly avoiding the spikes which shattered against the wall behind him. Jack rolled onto his side and crawled back the way he'd come. Once he turned the corner, he stood up and sprinted down the other way.

For a long while, Jack wandered around aimlessly, not knowing exactly where he was going. After one turn, he came to a long section of hallway. He sprinted forward.

Without warning, the floor gave way. A section of the stone collapsed beneath his feet. Jack fell, but clawed outward, catching a piece of intact floor outside of the hole. His chest slammed into the floor as his feet dangled above a bottomless pit, concealed by the fake floor. Struggling, he pulled himself back up and out of the hole. Just as he laid back to rest, the stone beneath him began to crack. Without time to stand, he began rolling away from the cracking floor. The stone behind him began to fracture and pieces of stone fell off into the chasm below. Jack rolled faster, trying to stay ahead of the splintering floor. Large chunks of rock fell off, inches behind Jack. The blackness of the bottomless pit threatened to swallow him whole. With great speed, Jack slammed into a wall at the end of the corridor. His breath left him and a sharp pain shot through his shoulder; something had cracked. Wincing in pain, he rolled back over and looked back down the long corridor. The entire floor to that section of hallway had fallen into the pit, stopping just short of where Jack lay. Jack stood. Off to his left, the maze continued. Without the ability to go back, Jack continued forward.

A few turns later, the maze led into a large room. The room was filled with a thick white fog and Jack could not see even a few feet in front of him. Thee fog completely blanketed the room.

Something hard hit Jack in the back, sending him stumbling forward. Seconds later, another object hit his legs, toppling him to the ground. Jack quickly hopped to his feet, only to be pelted with more projectiles. They assailed him from all directions, smashing into his back, legs, chest, and head. After on particularly hard shot to the face, Jack felt a trickle of blood flow down his cheek. Another slammed into his injured shoulder. The pain flooded Jack's consciousness, sending him to his knees. His breathing was ragged as he crawled onward, trying to find a way out of the room. The projectiles continued to slam him from all sides, unpredictable and indefensible. One hit him in the side causing pain to shoot through his abdomen. Blackness hung at the corners of his vision and unconsciousness threatened to overtake him. And the clock was still ticking.

The first thing he felt was pain. His head throbbed, his lungs hurt, and his chest felt tight as he tried to take a deep breath. Slowly, he opened his eyes. He was in some sort of a control room, surrounded by diagrams, computers, monitors, and at one end, a large glass window.

Sawyer rolled over and bumped into Locke. The older man was still knocked out. Sawyer's stiff neck screamed at him as he raised his head to look around. On the other side of Locke, Sayid was laying completely still. Kate was no where to be found. There was a man standing over a large bank of computers facing the window. Every couple of seconds, he would hit a few buttons or flip a few switches and chuckle. _That must be the funny man who likes games._ Sawyer watched the man for a long while; he seemed to be glued to the window. Silently, Sawyer sat up and strained to see over the computer bank. From the little he could see, the window was a balcony view of an extremely large room. Sawyer rolled over onto him stomach and rose to his knees. _I'm sick of this._ Getting to his feet, he turned to face Howard's back. His shoes made a slight sound on the stone floor, but Howard was to enthralled with whatever he was watching to hear him. Sawyer was completely up, but his hands were still bound behind his back. He pulled at the binds, but they were heavy and tight. He couldn't get them off.

Sawyer took steps forward, approaching Howard from behind. He almost reached the man undetected, but his image glinted off of the window. Howard spun quickly.

Sawyer kicked out, catching Howard in the leg. The man stumbled but did not fall. Howard sprang forward and grabbed Sawyer by the shoulders, stopping him from moving. Sawyer reacted quickly, head butting Howard hard and sending him back. A cut started bleeding from Howard's eyebrow. Sawyer continued to approach. He struck out again with his leg, trying to sweep Howard's legs from under him. But the other man caught Sawyer's attack and jammed an electric stun gun into his leg. Electric current flowed through Sawyer's leg and ran through the rest of his body. The stun gun paralyzed Sawyer, weakening him. He fell to the floor hard. He rolled over and tried to get back up. Howard hit him with another electric blast, sending him back to the floor. Sawyer's head hit the floor hard, knocking him unconscious.

Howard's face was stern. He didn't like interruptions. He turned around and looked back at out the window. Howard smiled. It was okay, Jack was still in the foggy room. And that was Howard's favorite.

Jack's vision blurred as the attack continued. His body was bruised and battered all over, pain arching up and down his entire frame. He was about to give up, to stop trying, when an image of Kate popped into his head. It was an unexpected thought. He saw her smiling, laughing at one of his jokes. Her entire face glowed as she laughed. It was an odd feeling that came to him. He knew now he couldn't fail. A well of increased adrenaline sprang through him, dampening the pain and giving him energy to move on. Crawling in a prone position, he continued forward. After a few minutes, he reached the wall. Scratching along the side of the wall, he moved at its base, searching for an opening. It took a long while, and many more pelting hits, but he found it. Crawling into the hallway and out of the line of fire, Jack slumped over and rested. A door of stone closed behind him, closing off the room. Jack was glad to be past it.

"Don't linger too long, Jack. Your time is running low." Howard's voice boomed loudly. Jack looked up and slowly stood. His entire body felt like it was on fire and his shoulder pulsated with pain.

He limped down the hallway, taking random turns when he came to another fork; he didn't have time to think. Jack charged headlong to the left and came to a hallway without a floor. A bottomless pit stretched downward from the floor's edge. Across the way, a platform where the floor continued could be seen. A small rope connected the floor where Jack was to the other side.

"This is impossible. I can't, I can't do this." Jack's breathing was ragged. _But I have to_. His thoughts left no room for failure. Getting onto his knees, Jack grabbed the rope and pulled himself off the ledge. He balanced on the rope, pulling himself slowly. He reached the other side without incident, but the effort left him even more drained. Jack got to his feet and continued on.

He turned a corner and ahead, about ten steps forward, he saw Kate. She was bound and gagged, but looked unhurt. She was sitting up. Her eyes grew wide when she saw him.

"Kate," Jack rushed forward and went to help her up. Suddenly, she disappeared and in her place was a fiery blaze, spewing straight for Jack. He leapt backward, narrowly missing the flame. Just as he hit the ground, a hail of wooden spikes shot out from all directions. Jack rolled and kicked off the ground, launching himself down the hallway. He hit the ground and curled into a ball, somersaulting away from even more spears.

But he wasn't quick enough. A sharp pain shot through his leg and a stream of blood began running from a spot in his thigh. Jack stopped his roll and found the spear still lodged in his leg. With a grunt, he yanked it out. The blood poured faster after he removed it, staining his pants and running down his leg. Jack undid his belt and wrapped it around his leg, using it as a makeshift tourniquet to stem the flow. Limping, he returned to the spot where he had seen Kate. He wasn't surprised to find nothing there.

"Nice trick of smoke and mirrors, eh Jack?" Howard laughed. "You're not there yet. But you are close."

Jack limped on, the pain growing worse. The tunnels and dead ends seemed everywhere. He continued to wander, trying to avoid more pitfalls and traps. Jack wasn't sure he could take many more surprises.

"One minute remaining." A mechanical voice announced as the lights above began flashing red.

"Hurry up, Jack. You don't have much time."

Jack limped faster. He turned left and right, flying down corridors blindly. At least once, he swore he was going in a circle, but he kept going on anyway. There wasn't anything else he could do.

At thirty seconds, the mechanical voice began a second-by-second countdown.

Jack turned a corner and tripped, slamming hard into the ground. Without wasting time to recover, he pushed himself up and continued forward. A left, then a right, then another left. Frantically, Jack raced through the pathways, desperate for any sign he was making positive progress.

He turned a corner and there she was. Sitting up bound and gagged exactly as she was before, was Kate. Wary of another trick, Jack approached slowly.

The timer ran down to five.

Jack realized that time was almost out. He ran forward, sprinting headlong toward the woman he so desperately wanted to save. The hallway he ran in seemed to go on forever. Diving headfirst, he strained to reach her.

The timer ran out.

Jack slammed hard into a clear Plexiglas barrier. His entire body crunched and erupted in a new wave of pain. He clattered onto the floor. Pushing past the pain, he clawed at the barrier, watching as Kate struggled against her binds. Jack hit the clear wall hard, slamming it with his fist. Kate watched as Jack tried in vain to break down the barrier.

"Sorry, Jack. Time's run out." Howard almost seemed disappointed.

A trapdoor opened beneath Kate and she tumbled through. A column of white light rose up out of the pit as everything else went dark.

"You lose."

A clear gas filled the chamber, hissing as it entered. As Jack breathed it in, a strange calm came over him. The pain in his shoulder lessened and his fatigue deepened. A warmth washed over him. With little resistance after the tiring course, Jack closed his eyes and went to sleep.


	5. Return to the Black Rock

**Chapter 5: Return to the Black Rock**

A cool mist brought Jack back to consciousness. At first he luxuriated in the soothing mist, letting the water cool his face. Then the memories from the past day came back, flooding into his mind like an uncontrollable tide of pain, suffering, and frustration. He snapped open his eyes.

He was back outside in the jungle, surrounded by dense walls of vegetation. A light mist was falling, blanketing the jungle in a film of water. Jack sat up and grimaced. His shoulder still hurt; and now on top of it, his head pounded. Squinting against the pain stabbing behind his eyes, he surveyed the immediate area. He recognized the area, but he still had no idea where he was. Crawling forward, his hand bumped something metal. Brushing off some of the plants growing on it, he uncovered a metal door embedded in the ground. Slowly sitting back down, Jack looked around again.

_That's where I am. This is where the monster attacked us. Where we found the hatch. How did I get outside?_ He looked back at the hatch. _Kate!_

"Hey, Doc. We'd thought you'd never get up." Jack recognized Sawyer's voice from behind. Turning around, he saw the man standing there, flanked by Locke and Sayid.

"How are you feeling?" Locke came forward and knelt down, offering Jack a canteen. Jack took the canteen and drank. The water streamed into his mouth, soothing his parched throat. Swallowing the drink, he handed Locke back the water.

"What happened?" Jack asked. He rubbed his eyes, trying to clear them.

"Not really sure, Jack." Locke took a drink of his own. "We woke up about an hour ago here in the jungle."

"Where's Kate?" Jack looked to each of the men in turn.

For a long moment, everyone was silent. Only the light pattering of the falling mist sounded the jungle. At length, Sayid spoke. "We believe she is still inside the hatch."

"What? I…I don't understand." Jack stood up on wobbly legs. _You lost, Jack_, his brain screamed at him. _You failed her._ "We have to go back in. We can't leave her."

"No can do, Doc," Sawyer strolled over to the hatch. He bent down and pulled on the handle. The hatch didn't budge. "It's locked up tight."

"We have to get back down there," Jack steadied himself. "We have to…"

"It's locked, Jack," Locke said. "We can't get inside."

"You got your hatch open." Jack paused, thinking. "We have to go back to the Black Rock."

"The what?" Sawyer asked.

"Come now, Jack." Locke stepped toward him. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"What the hell is the Black Rock?" Sawyer asked again.

"Why, Locke?" Jack asked, his tone accusatory. "What's the difference? Is it because _I_ want the hatch open and not you? Is that the difference?"

Locke was silent for a moment. "We don't know what happened in there. We could have been killed."

Jack walked toward Locke, until both off them stood face to face. "I know what happened in there. If we don't go back in, Kate _will_ be killed."

"Hey!" Sawyer yelled. Both Jack and Locke looked at him. "What the hell is the Black Rock?"

"It's a ship," Jack replied.

"Oh, well ain't that just great! We've been sitting here on a deserted island waitin' to be rescued and the whole time you've know about a ship!"

"It's not that kind of ship," Locke said. "It's an old slave ship. Beached inland."

Sawyer looked incredulous. "A slave ship? Why are we goin' there?"

Jack spoke up. "Dynamite."

"So we are going to the Black Lands?" Sayid asked. The four were hiking through the jungle, which was becoming progressively more rocky and steeper.

"That's where the Black Rock is." Jack was climbing up a hill.

"What do we know about this area?" Sayid helped boost Jack up the sheer incline.

"Only what Danielle told us," Locke said. "This is where her signal was broadcasting from. Oh, and there is a ship beached a mile inland."

"The Black Rock is beached a mile inland?" Sayid asked. "How is that possible?"

"Come on, Omar," Sawyer said. "Have you forgotten the polar bear already? How does _that_ happen?"

"Point taken. What else do we know about this place?"

For a long moment, everyone was silent. Hesitently, Jack spoke. "This is where the sickness Danielle talked about came from."

Jack's statement hung in the air for a long while. They stopped for a short break after another mile of hiking.

"What do you guys think happened to Michael?" Locke asked between drinks.

Jack stiffened. "I don't know, Locke." Venom dripped from his words. "What do you think happened?"

Locke locked eyes with the doctor. "I know you still blame me for Michael's disappearance, Jack. But it was Michael's decision. I had no right to interfere with his choice."

"You thought it was smart to let him run around the jungle alone, Locke? He could be dead, or worse by now."

"Both of you need to stop this." Sayid spoke for the first time in a while. "We cannot change the situation. There is no sense arguing about it. We must do what we can to help Kate _now_."

"He's right ya know." Sawyer smiled wryly. "You two are acting like me."

"Let's get going, then." Jack strapped his canteen back onto his belt. "The Black Rock is close."

The ship sat there, tall and imposing in the jungle. It was an odd sight, with no water being anywhere around, for a giant 19th century masted ship to be shipwrecked there. The sky above had become overcast and dark rain clouds threatened in the distance. Winds funneled through the trees, causing eerie sounds to echo throughout the jungle. At least once during the trip, Jack swore the winds were causing whispers.

"So that's the Black Rock," Sayid said. "There is dynamite there?"

"Oh, yea." Locke sounded happy. "Lots of dynamite."

The wooden crate was sitting outside the ship, where the castaways had left it before. As the four walked toward it, they passed a large black spot on the ground.

Sawyer stared at it as they passed. "What's that?"

"That's Arzt." Jack didn't look back.

"What's Arzt?"

"He was a science teacher." Jack reached the crate.

"We used all the dry dynamite on the other hatch," Locke said. "All of these sticks are soaked in nitroglycerin. Perhaps there is another way to do this."

"It's the only way." Jack was firm. "Kate's still down there and we can't leave her. She wouldn't leave any of us. Don't worry, I'll carry all the sticks myself."

"No, I'll carry some." Sawyer spoke up. Everyone turned and looked at him.

"You know this stuff could get you killed. Boom, just like that," Jack said.

"I'm aware of the risks, Doc. How much do we need?"

"Last time we took three," Locke said. "The same should do the trick this time."

"Will you help?"

"Jack, if there is one idea in all of this that I can get behind it's to never leave a man behind." Locke moved toward the crate. "That's the first rule in the army."

"You were in the army?" Jack asked.

"Something like that." Locke quickly changed the subject. "Let's do this."

He looked in and tried to pick out the driest of the leftover dynamite. "Okay, who's first?"

Jack slipped off his pack. "Me first."

"First, we need something to wrap it in." Locke took out a towel from his pack and poured water on it. He handed the towel to Jack and reached into the crate.

"Another game of Operation, huh Locke?" Jack laughed nervously.

"No, Jack, this isn't a game." Locke mocked seriousness. "You shouldn't joke around like that."

He pulled up a stick of dynamite and placed it into the outstretched towel. Once the stick was wrapped carefully, Jack put it into his backpack. Slowly, he zipped up the pack.

"Next." Locke looked at Sawyer.

Sawyer slipped off his pack. "Just be careful with this, okay Mr. Clean?"

Locke reached in and brought out another stick. The yellowish dried nitro was encrusted all around the dynamite. He wrapped it into another damp towel and handed it to Sawyer. "Be careful with that."

A few minutes later, Locke had the third stick secured in his own pack. "Okay, let's go."

The four started back into the jungle toward the hatch; each was separated by a long distance.

"Just in case," Locke had said.

"I just don't know what to do." Charlie was sitting with Sun in her garden. "I guess it's kinda funny, huh? To come to you with a problem like this. We don't really even know each other."

Sun was planting a new cycle of plants. "It doesn't matter, Charlie. I know about love."

"Love? Oh, no, I don't think you understand. I'm not in lo--," Charlie was interrupted.

"Here," Sun handed him a white lily she had picked. "Try this. It works every time."

Charlie took the flower and smiled. "Thanks, Sun."

He was just about to stand and go when the jungle behind them erupted into noise. Charlie turned just as a man crashed through the foliage and hit him. He toppled to the ground and rolled away. "Get off me." He stood up and opened his mouth to say something else, but stopped when he saw the man. It was someone he had never seen before. "Who are you?"

The man got to his feet and took a deep breath. He was ragged and dirty, with holes in his clothes. His eyes, though, were bright and captivating. "My name is Ray, Ray Ponthes. Danielle sent me. I have to speak to Jack. I have an urgent message for him."

"Jack's not here," Sun said. "If you want I can take you to--,"

"Wait a second, Sun." Charlie eyed the man suspiciously. "I don't think we should do anything for him."

"Please," Ray's breathing was in short, quick bursts. "I need to talk to Jack."

"You said you were sent by Danielle. She tried to kidnap Clair's baby. Why should we believe you?"

Ray looked from Charlie to Sun, then back again. "Please, I need--." His eyes rolled up into his head and he fell limply to the ground.

Sun's eyes widened. She stood up and ran out of the jungle shouting. "Help! Help! We need help!"

Ana-Lucia came rushing over. Right behind her was Eko and Jin.

"What is it?" Ana asked.

"A man collapsed. We need help."

They rushed back to the garden, where Charlie was leaning over the unconscious form of Ray, unsure of what to do. Ana immediately began CPR.

"Come on, wake up!" Ana shouted. She turned to Jin. "Bring some water, now." Sun quickly translated the order.

Jin was back swiftly with the bottle of water. He handed it to Ana.

The man's eyes fluttered as the water was poured on his face. He coughed violently. Ana gave his some of the water to drink. Still coughing, he sat up.

"Whoa, calm down." Ana held his shoulder. "You need to breath slowly."

The man fought through the coughing fit. "No!" He shouted suddenly. The people around him, surprised, stepped back. "I'm, I'm sorry. I just need to speak to Jack."

"For what?" Ana gave him the canteen so he could drink more.

Ray hesitated. "I can't tell you. Danielle said to only tell Jack, or a man called Sayid."

"I don't like him," Charlie said. "He's a bloody liar!" He was shouting adamantly.

"We need to be careful not to overact," said Eko.

"He's probably one of _them_!" Charlie said. "Come to attack us again."

"Charlie could be right," Sun agreed. The failed kidnapping attempt on her still hung fresh in her mind. "We should be careful."

Ana looked at Ray. "Why do you need to talk to Jack?"

"I told you: I can't tell anyone but Jack or Sayid." Ray took another drink and looked up at Charlie. "Look, I know you don't trust me and me not telling you anything makes it worse, but I'm not lying and I really have no idea what you're talking about."

"What do you think?" Ana looked to Eko.

"I think we should be careful. But we should not be paranoid."

Ana nodded in agreement. "Jack and Sayid aren't here right now. You can come back and wait with me. I'll watch you."

Ray seemed annoyed. "I need to speak with Jack now."

"Look, I don't know what to tell you. He's not here and I don't know where he is."

Ray looked around to each person. "I'll wait then."

Eko eyed the man. "I'll will wait, too."

Jack sat down slowly and took a drink. The leaves behind him began to crackle. "Hey, Sayid, stop for a second. And tell the others to stop too."

With another drink, Jack began to think about the past month and a half. It was amazing how they had gotten to this point and all that they had been through. Sayid came up to Jack.

"Hey, Sayid, you should stay back. This stuff could go at any moment." Jack jerked his thumb at his pack.

"I'm not worried," Sayid said. "I need to talk with you."

"Sure. Go ahead."

"I was thinking that one of us should go back to the camp and let everyone else know what is going on. We might be able to get help there."

Jack took a drink. "I was thinking that too, Sayid. But the hatch is close; maybe six, seven miles from here. And we could really use your help."

"It was just an idea." Sayid looked back into the jungle. Locke and Sawyer were only a few paces behind him, getting close.

"We taking a break, Jack?" Locke asked.

"Just for a minute or two. It wouldn't make sense to get to the hatch dead tired."

Locke sat down and took out his own canteen. "Makes sense to me."

For a few minutes they sat and drank. At length, Jack stood up clipped his canteen back onto his belt. He made sure to move carefully and avoidsudden jerks.The thought of the dynamite never left his mind."Okay, let's go." Jack turned around and froze in mid-step. His eyes hardened as he gazed ahead.

"Hello, Jack. How ya doin'? It's been a while."

From behind Jack, Sawyer spoke up. "Hey Zeke."


	6. Stranger on the Shore

**Chapter 6: Stranger on the Shore**

"I guess you've finally come back so we can finish this." Sawyer stepped forward toward Zeke.

The bearded man ignored him and focused on Jack. "I thought we had a deal."

"We do have a deal. We've left you alone." Jack said defiantly. "What are you doing here?"

"You broke the boundary. Came over the line. The ship, Jack," Zeke said. "The ship's over the line."

"No, the line's deeper in the jungle. We're no where near it."

"Wrong, Jack. You seem to forget who's making the rules." Zeke became angry. "_I_ will tell you where the line is, not the other way around. I'm sorry, but now you'll have to suffer."

"You're not coming anywhere near me." Jack stood firmly.

Zeke smiled coldly. "I won't have to, Jack. I'm going to kill someone in your camp."

Jack opened his mouth to say something, but stopped.

"See Jack, I could kill you. But to kill those around you, until you are the only one left, well, that's a fate worse than death."

"You can't do anything at the camp if you're here." Jack stared intently at Zeke.

"I already have someone there, Jack. Have you learned nothing? There isn't anything you can do." Zeke smiled, bearing black and yellow teeth.

"Sayid," Jack cast a sidelong glance at the Iraqi. "Go! Run for the camp!"

Sayid dashed to the left, blasting through a thick layer of flora. He was about to break into a full run when a flash of brown caught the corner of his eye. It froze him for just a second, giving the thick branch enough time to smash directly into the side of his head. A stabbing pain cut through his head and a flash of white blinded him. Sayid fell to all fours, struggling to stay conscious. Another smack to the head broke his resistance. Sayid collapsed onto his stomach, blood streaming from the side of his head.

Jack watched in horror as Sayid collapsed and stopped moving.

"You see, Jack, you can't win." Zeke seemed amused. "We have you surrounded literally and figuratively. If you had not broken the deal, I wouldn't have to punish you."

"I didn't break the deal!" Jack yelled. He strode forward violently, but quickly regained his composure. "You changed the rules."

"You should have stayed on the beach, Jack," Zeke said. "Then you would have been safe."

"You can't do this," Jack replied. "I won't let you."

"What are you going to do?" Zeke looked at Jack comically. "We have every advantage."

Jack was silent for a moment. Then he slipped off his backpack. "I still got one."

"What's that?" Zeke seemed curious.

Jack smiled coldly. "It looks like you _don't_ know everything. It's dynamite. And it's just about ready to go off."

Zeke seemed genuinely surprised, but quickly hid his shock. "What are you going to do with that, Jack? Blow us all up?"

"Do you want to find out?" Jack took a step forward. "Now you'll do what I want or I throw the backpack right at your feet."

Zeke was silent for a minute. "What do you want, Jack?"

"Sawyer, take off your pack." Jack did not look away from Zeke.

"What do you mean, Doc? I'm comin' with ya," Sawyer said.

"Sawyer, just this once listen to me." Jack's voice rose in volume. "Please, just do it."

"Whatever you want, Doc." Sawyer placed the pack on the ground. "It was your plan, anyway."

Jack stared directly at Zeke. "Let him through and leave him alone until he reaches the camp."

"You know I can't do that," Zeke responded. "I'm not going to allow you to interfere."

Jack swung the backpack.. "You don't have a choice. Let him through, or I'll toss it."

Zeke stood still. Finally, he relented. "Okay, Jack. He can go through."

"Go Sawyer, go back to camp and see what you can do." Jack turned back to Sawyer.

"Jack," Locke spoke up for the first time, "I wouldn't look away."

But it was too late. In the blink of an eye, two raggedy men leapt from the underbrush. One twisted Jack's arm, ripping from his grasp the backpack; the other slammed into Jack's knees, sending him down hard. Another man came behind Sawyer and slammed the butt of a hunting rifle into his head. Sawyer grunted as he fell, blood coming from the side of his head.

A fourth man leapt from the trees at Locke, grabbing him from behind and holding a knife to his throat. "Take off the backpack, old man." The man's breath was hot. "And do it slowly."

Locke reached up, grabbing for the backpack strap. As his hand passed the knife, he grabbed hold of the other's wrist, bending back the hand and twisting his arm. Locke jerked the arm down, sending a jolt of pain up his attacker's arm. The man dropped the knife. Locke jammed his elbow back, hitting the man's ribs. Another elbow to the face sent the knife-wielder to the ground. Locke picked up the knife, readying himself for another attack.

"Put it down and come quietly." Zeke was breathing hard. "Or I'll have to hurt your friend." Two men were holding Jack, pinning his arms behind his back and immobilizing his legs. Zeke held a handgun, pointed at Locke.

Locke looked from Jack to Zeke. Shoulders slumping, Locke dropped the knife. Immediately, Locke was tripped from behind and his arms restrained.

Zeke motioned to some of his partners. "Dump their stuff into the river." Zeke walked in front of Jack. "I gave you the chance to be at peace, Jack. All you had to do was stay on your beach." He pistol whipped Jack in the forehead.

Jack slumped forward, unconscious.

"So what are we going to do with him?" Sun was talking with Ana and Charlie. Ray had been moved to a spot down near the water, where he was in plain sight to everyone.

"I don't know. People are going to start asking questions" Ana looked down the beach to where Eko was standing over the stranger. "I guess we wait for Jack."

"That's the stupidest thing I've heard." Charlie was nearly yelling. "Come on, Ana, you know he's one of them. Have you forgotten already what they have done?"

"Look Charlie," Ana replied. "I haven't forgotten anything. But Eko thinks we should wait for Jack."

"Who bloody cares what Eko thinks?" Charlie said.

"I do," Ana said firmly.

Charlie opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't think of a response. Then an idea came to him. "I know what Danielle looks like. Let's go see if he really was sent from her."

Ana and Charlie left Sun and walked down the beach. They reached the shoreline quickly.

"Has he said anything?" Ana asked.

"No." Eko shook his head.

"You said your name was Ray?" Charlie asked the man.

"Yes." Ray responded quickly.

"And you said Danielle sent you?"

Ray was visible annoyed. "Yes."

"What color is her hair?"

Ray was silent for a minute. "Brown."

"Long or short?"

"Long."

"What's her last name?"

"Charlie," Ana interrupted. "Let's not do this now."

Charlie stared wide-eyed at her. "If not now, when? After he's killed one of us?"

"I will not let that happen," Eko said.

"You think you can control them?" Charlie said. He moved up close to Ana; his face was inches from hers. "I've seen one of them so strong he dragged a pregnant woman through the jungle like she was weightless. I've been left for dead hanging from a tree. Ask Jack when he gets back, he'll tell you how strong Ethan was."

"Don't pretend to tell me about the others that live on this island." Ana's face hardened. "I was there when nine of the survivors were taken. I was there when one of them infiltrated our camp and killed one of us. I've been through just as much as you."

Off to the side, Ray turned to Eko. "You don't mind them arguing back and forth, making decisions, and never asking you for your input?"

Eko looked at the man and debated in his head whether to respond or not. After a few moments Eko said, "I am here to do something, they are here to do something different. If my input was needed, I would give it."

"Still, you'd think a man like yourself would get more respect around here. It's like you don't matter to them."

Eko smiled. "Right now that does not concern me."

Ana and Charlie finished their argument. She turned to Ray and Eko. "We can't do anything until Jack gets back anyway. But until then, don't let him move."

Eko nodded his head. "He will not move."

It was dark. For a second, the blackness is all that Jack knew. After a few seconds, he heard the regular breathing of others; his companions must still be asleep. Jack shivered, but it wasn't cold. The situation he found himself was too familiar. He rolled over, groaning as his shoulder hit the concrete floor. It throbbed, sending waves of pain down his arm and through his neck. His vision clouded and the darkness took him again.

Dragging a full grown human through the jungle was hard work. Howard plumped down onto a fallen tree and drank deeply from a canteen of water. He looked at his prisoner, the woman that Jack had failed to save. For a second, he felt sorry for her. He had no idea what they would do, but she was in for a rough time. They were known for their nasty medical experiments and other psychological torments. Pushing those thoughts from his mind, he drank again. The jungle around him was silent. That's how he knew they were near.

Finishing his break, he grabbed the woman by her arms and began dragging her. He moved through the jungle for another hour and eventually emerged into a large clearing. Sitting down on the ground, he drank again. Now all he needed to do was wait.

A few hours passed and the day waned. Thick clouds above blocked out the moon and the stars, making the jungle utterly dark. Howard's eyes adjusted rapidly, but he still couldn't see very well. He was just about to take another drink when a voice behind startled him.

"Is she here?" The voice was gruff and deep.

Howard turned to regard the newcomer. Even after all the years working with him, Howard couldn't grow comfortable in his presence. Evil seemed to walk with him.

"Yes," Howard responded, his voice shaky.

The newcomer scratched his beard. His dark eyes pierced Howard. "Well, then, let's get this over with. What do you want for her?"

Howard shivered on the inside. "The deal was already in place."

"Fine then," the man tossed a small case at Howard. "That's it."

Howard opened the case and checked inside. "Okay. Take her."

Two men brushed past Howard from behind; Howard hadn't even known anyone was there. They walked forward and picked up the girl, carrying her between them.

Howard glanced back down at the case he had received. When he looked back up a moment later, all three men and their new prisoner had disappeared into the night.

"I don't think I like this, dude." Hurley was fishing with Jin and Libby. "We shouldn't just let random strangers walk into our camp. Of course, you can't understand anything that I'm saying."

"I don't like it either," Libby threw her spear into the water. "But until something happens, maybe we should believe him. He hasn't hurt anyone. And we can't exactly stop people from coming into camp. It is a wide open beach."

"Still I don't like it." Hurley threw his spear into the water. "Ethan was creepy enough."

Jin began saying something in Korean.

"Dude, no comprendo. I can't understand anything you say."

Jin stopped talking and pointed to his pile of fish on the beach. Four big flounders sat there. Then Jin pointed to where Hurley and Libby's pile of fish were, or where it should have been. They hadn't caught anything yet.

Libby laughed. "I think he wants us to stop talking and start fishing. The light is starting to fade."

Hurley looked down to throw his spear again when he saw something floating in the water a few yards away. He waded forward and picked it up. It was a backpack. Holes and deep gashes were ripped in it and water had flooded inside.

"Dudes," Hurley called over to Libby and Jin. "I think I know whose pack this is."

"Huh?" Libby waded over to where Hurley stood. "What did you say?"

"I found this backpack." Hurley turned around. Before he said anything, Libby and Jin both knew what he was thinking. "I think its Jack's."

Deep purples and oranges streaked across the sky, signaling the coming of dusk. The darkness on the island always came quickly, but today's light would not go away completely for another hour or so. Ana and Charlie had retired further up the beach, still arguing about the prisoner. Ray had sat down on the sand, watching the surf come in and crash on the beach. He hadn't spoken since his conversation with Eko, but he didn't need to. The other man had frequently grown pensive and his eyes were blank. Ray knew Eko was thinking deeply about his status in the camp compared to everyone else. Ray smiled. _Hopefully, he will be able to figure out exactly what it is he wants_, Ray thought. He only wanted what was best for Eko.

Ray looked down the shoreline. He froze. For a second, his mind went blank, then it began to scream at him. He shot up from the ground and began walking away. Eko was instantly on him.

"What are you doing?" Eko held Ray's arm, stopping him from moving.

"I have to go."

"I am sorry, you can't go anywhere." Eko held on tighter.

Ray turned and looked directly at Eko. "I _have_ to. You don't understand." He began struggling with Eko. "I have to leave!"

Eko held the man in place. "Why so suddenly?"

Ray sighed and gritted his teeth. "Cause that man right there," Ray pointed down the beach to a tall, broad shouldered man walking toward them, "is coming to kill me."

Besides for the really long hiatus I took writing this story (due mainly to a busy school schedule) I usually like to update once a week to coincide with the production of the TV show. But this story is nearing its end and the next chapter is going to take longer to write. So, although I will try to update with the next chapter within the week, chances are that it will take me two weeks. I hope you will not lose interest in the story by waiting an extra week. I am confident it will be worth the wait.


	7. The Island Struggle

**Chapter 7: The Island Struggle**

Jack sat up, his head groggy. Wiping his eyes, he focused ahead of him. Everything was dark. Below him he felt the cold hardness of concrete.

"Hello?" he called out. His throat was dry. There was no answer. "Hello?" he called again.

"No use callin' for anybody, Doc." Jack recognized Sawyer's voice. "There ain't anyone here that can help you.

"It's just you and me?" Jack wiped his brow.

"Baldy's still out cold. They took Mohammad out a while back, hasn't been back yet."

"Where are we?" Jack tried to push himself up, but found his arms shaky.

"No clue. Except a small concrete room."

A thick door opened up, letting in a flash of bright light. Two men walked in, carrying Sayid between them. They heaved the prisoner into the room. Sayid hit the floor hard, collapsing limply. Wordlessly, the two men walked in and picked up Locke. Carrying him between them, they left the room.

Sayid rolled over and groaned.

Jack crawled over to where the other man lay. "What's wrong?"

Sayid was breathing heavily. "They have some sort of room. They wanted information on our camp. When I refused, they tortured me."

"What did they do?" Jack's eyes were beginning to adjust. He could see the wound on Sayid's head from the butt of the rifle. It had been reopened and some sort of powder was there.

Before Sayid could answer, his eyes rolled up into his head and he lay still. His chest rose and fell sharply, but Jack didn't seem concerned.

"That just ain't right." Sawyer was watching over Jack's shoulder.

"He should be okay." Jack checked Sayid's pulse. "Everything seems stable."

Sawyer squatted down besides Sayid. "They put salt in his wound."

"Huh?" Jack asked.

"The white stuff in his gash there. It's salt."

"What do we do?" Jack tried to stand up again. This time he was successful.

"Nothing much we can do, Doc. This room's pretty solid." Sawyer sighed. "Just sit tight."

Eko continued to hold Ray, his grip tightening as the frightened man fought against it. "I don't understand. Why would he kill you?"

"Just let me go." Ray's raised his voice. "I need to go."

"Hold on one moment." Without releasing Ray, Eko turned around and faced the approaching man. He was getting closer.

Ana had become proficient at blocking out Charlie's voice, especially when he continued to yell and shout. He was doing that now, but Ana wasn't listening. She was staring down at the beach, where Eko and Ray were struggling. She saw the other man approaching, but didn't recognize him. Ignoring Charlie, she began walking forward toward the conflict.

Eko looked up at the coming man. Behind him, Ray continued to thrash about, trying to break Eko's strong hold. "Stop." Eko held up his other hand, palm toward the man. He did not listen. His eyes were focused solely on Ray and his speed increased.

Ray fought against Eko, trying desperately to break away. He glanced toward the oncoming man and his heartbeat increased again. Ray saw Eko's stick, hanging from the loop on his belt. He slipped it out and swung hard.

Before Eko could react, the Jesus stick came down hard on the side of his head. The hit was far from enough to send him down, but the stab of pain momentarily froze him. His grip on Ray loosened.

Ray ripped his hand free and began sprinting down the beach. His pursuer sped up as well, quickly gaining on Ray. Eko spun around and began to run after the two men, but he could not catch up.

Ray continued to run. Then from behind, there was a push. He fell forward, slamming face first into the beach. Sand plunged up his nose and filled his mouth, choking him. He felt a heavy weight settle on him back, pinning him to the ground. The other man had sat down on top of him.

Two strong hands firmly held Ray's head down, pushing it into the sand. Ray began to struggle, but the hands were strong. He could not move his face out of the sand. His lungs began to burn and he desperately needed to breathe. White and red blotches of color began to cloud his vision and his head began to spin. The dizziness disorientated Ray and all fight left him. The hands pushed even harder and Ray stopped moving. He fought against his eyes rolling to the back of his head. Then, the weight lifted off of him and the hands stopped pushing.

Ana tumbled down into the water, grappling with the unknown man she just tackled. They fought as the surf rolled in, blasts of water hitting them full force. Ana continued to fight, but the man was unnaturally strong. He was able to pin her to the ground as the water flowed over her. Ana kicked upward, her knee catching the man squarely in his stomach. His breath left him and he relaxed his grip on Ana. She was about to push him back when two large arms gripped him in a reverse bear hug and hauled him skyward.

Eko threw the man out of the water and onto the beach. The man tumbled uncontrollable after he hit the sand. Eko reached down and helped Ana out of the water. They raced over to where the man lay.

"Who are you?" Ana bent over him, coming face to face. "We'll find out one way or another. You might as well just tell us."

The man stared at Ana, his dull grey eyes belying no emotion. He reached up and grabbed his head. In one quick motion, he snapped his own neck. He fell back and lay on the sand, instantly dead.

"Damnit!" Ana shouted.

Eko turned and walked over to Ray. The man had managed to roll over and was still grasping for breath. "Are you okay?"

Ray just nodded.

"Are you ready to tell us everything now?" Ana had come over.

Ray nodded again.

"Good." Ana reached down and helped him up. "Let's get to it then."

"I hate this, just waiting here." Jack sat back against the hard wall. Every muscle in his body ached.

Sawyer was sitting against the opposite wall. "Can't say I don't agree, Doc."

The stone door grated against the floor as it was opened. Jack shielded his eyes from the light with his hand. Beyond it, he could only see one silhouette.

"I think it's time we got outta here. What do say, Jack?" It was Locke's voice.

"Locke?" Jack stood up and walked over to the doorway. "What... what's going on?"

Jack's eyes adjusted. Locke had splatters of blood on his shirt and pants and he was carrying a knife he didn't have before.

"I think I know where Kate is."

Jack looked up. "Where?"

"Here, in this facility. She's in another holding room."

Sawyer came over to the doorway. "Let's get going then."

"Here." Locke handed Sawyer a second knife. "You might need this."

Jack went back into the concrete room and slowly awoke Sayid. He opened his eyes and sat up woozy. "What is it?"

"We're out, Sayid. We need to move." Jack helped the man to his feet.

Sayid slowly moved away from Jack. His legs were shaky, but he could hold himself up. "Then let's go."

The four moved out of the room and into the concrete hallway beyond. Locke was first, leading the rest throughout the corridors. Jack caught up and lowered his voice so only Locke could hear him. "Are you alright? What did they do to you?" He looked again at Locke's bloodstained shirt. "What did _you_ do to _them_?"

Locke continued forward and did not look at Jack. "Some things are best kept to oneself. Let's leave it at that. She's right over here."

Locke walked up to a door and opened it. Light from the hallway flooded into the dark room. Jack entered first.

He slowly made his way forward, blinded by the darkness. He held his hands out in front of him, feeling for the wall ahead. Suddenly, he was hit from the side. A fist impacted on his jaw, sending him stumbling sideways. He grunted as he regained his balance.

"Jack?" It was her.

"Yeah, it's me." He rubbed his jaw. "Nice shot." His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he could see her. She seemed unhurt. "Are you okay?"

She raced forward and hugged him tight. "What took you so long?"

Jack grunted as his shoulder was compressed. "I got hung up."

"Hey, if you two could get past the pleasantries, we need to get outta here." Sawyer was a step into the room. "It's cold in here."

Kate let go of Jack and looked at Sawyer. "What are you doing here? Come back for me?"

Sawyer laughed. "Naw, I heard there was gonna be refreshments."

"We really do need to be going," Locke said from the hallway. "It isn't going to be long before--," he was interrupted by a loud _beep_.

Everyone remained quiet, listening for it again. A second later, it came.

"That sounds familiar," Locke said. "Like it's from our hatch."

Jack looked at Locke. "No, Locke. Don't even think about it."

"You still don't understand, do you Jack?" Locke spoke over the sound of another beep. "I have to do this. We don't have much time."

"If you're going to go, then go. The rest of us are getting out of here." Jack helped Kate exit the room.

"Then I'll find my own way back." Locke smirked. "I have to go push that button. We can't let it countdown."

"Fine," Jack said shortly. "You do whatever it is you think you need to do."

"I'll go with him," Sayid said. "We should not go off on our own." He looked at Locke. "Which way is it?"

Locke looked at Jack. "As best I can tell, the exit's that way." He pointed back down the hall. "That means the control room is probably this way."

Sayid and Locke split from Jack, Sawyer, and Kate.

"Are you feeling alright?" Jack asked Kate.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

The stone corridor ended ahead of them, turning to the right. The three turned the corner. Ahead, the steel exit door could be seen, marking the end of the hallway. But between them and the steel door stood a man.

"I'm afraid you can't go anywhere." Zeke stood with his hands on his hips. "Except back to your cells."

Sawyer stepped forward. "You two turn around and find the other exit. I'll handle this."

"Sawyer, you shouldn't do this," Jack said.

Sawyer held up his hand to stop Jack from continuing. "Yes, I should. Take her outta here."

Jack stepped back, pulling Kate back with him.

"You can't let him do this." Kate was adamant. "He'll get hurt, or killed."

Sawyer laughed up ahead. "You afraid for me, Freckles? I'll be fine. Gotta come back to you, after all."

"Come on." Jack pulled Kate a little firmer. "Let him do this." They turned around and ran back down the corridor.

Sawyer walked forward, coming closer to Zeke. "I'm glad you've decided to do this. It's about time we finish this."

"What do you think you're going to do, huh? Hurt me? You should turn around and get out of here now, while I'm giving you the chance."

Sawyer threw the first punch.

"We're getting close." Locke ran around a corner, Sayid right behind. The beeping had increased in frequency, signaling the countdown getting lower.

"We might not be close enough," Sayid answered. "The beeping is getting much faster."

"We'll make it." Locke ran faster. Both of them sprinted past an open room. Locke skidded to a halt. "Wait, Sayid. It's in here."

Locke ran into the room and sat down in front of the computer. His fingers moved like lightning, finding the keys on the keyboard. The timer was down to :10.

Sayid stood at the door. "Quickly, Locke. Somebody is coming."

Locke hit the execute button, sending in the code. The timer froze at :02, then began cycling back. Locke breathed a sigh of relief. Before he could completely catch his breath, Sayid came inside the room. "Someone's coming, Locke. We must move."

Locke stood up from his chair and moved over to the doorway. He readied his knife at his side.

Jack and Kate ran through the maze of stone corridors, trying to find someway out. They turned a left and raced down the hallway. At the end, there was a ladder leading upward.

"Okay, you go up first." Jack said.

Kate nodded. She began climbing the ladder. Jack was close behind, grimacing as he put weight on his injured shoulder. Soon they reached the underside of the hatch. Kate reached up to push it. Just as the hatch began to move, she froze and stopped pushing.

"What is it?" Jack asked.

"Hold on," Kate said. "Be quiet for a second. Someone outside is talking."

Kate listened intently.

"Blow it," it was a deep voice.

"Are you sure? We'll lose everything," a second voice answered.

"They escaped and are roaming around inside. We can't let them get away with anything?"

"Isn't boss still inside?" The second voice was worried.

"He'll get out. Just do it."

"Fine. I'll set the timer for two minutes."

The first voice grunted. "Do it and let's get outta here. The blast is gonna level everything around here."

Kate listened as two sets of footsteps faded into the distance. She looked down at Jack. "We need to go back."

"What? Why?"

"They're going to blow up the hatch. We need to warn the others."

"Blow up the hatch? I don't understand," Jack said.

"There is no time to explain." Kate started down the ladder. "Just go down. We need to get back to Sawyer, Locke, and Sayid. And we don't have much time."


End file.
